No LG, territory under Boko Haram control – Buratai

Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, has restated that no local government area in Borno or any territory in the North East Zone is being occupied by the Boko Haram sect.

Buratai spoke on Saturday while responding to questions at a special congress of the FCT Council of the NUJ.

The army chief, who said the military had routed the insurgents and was currently securing the region, noted that terrorism was complex and called for patience.

Buratai also called on journalists to show understanding in reporting the insurgency for the sake of national interest.

He recalled that there was mistrust in the past between the media and the army and assured of seamless flow of information as long as it does not affect national security.

Earlier, the Chairman of the FCT Council of the NUJ, Mr Paul Abechi, called for understanding between the military and the media in the interest of the nation.

Abechi said that while Nigerians depended on the military for safety, they also depended on the media for information, urging both parties to work together.

He noted the successes so far recorded in the fight against insurgency in the North East Zone and commended Buratai for providing the required leadership in the campaign.

In his remarks, the National President of NUJ, Mr Waheed Odusile, stressed the need for the army to provide journalists with needed information to enable them report correctly.

Odusile noted with satisfaction that normalcy was returning to Borno and other parts of the North East Zone and commended the leadership of the army.

He said that the occasional conflict between the military and journalists often arose out of the different roles each party plays for the well being of the society.

The NUJ president described the Nigerian media as patriotic, saying that the media only criticise the military to make it to perform better.